Full-Gaps Day 51 (Pre-Intro)

Breakfast:
-Leftover Easy Coleslaw
-coffee, black

Lunch:
-none (oops)

Snacks:
-Crispy walnuts, pecans, hazelnuts, & pecans

Dinner:
-Oven BBQ'd Chicken Thighs
-Leftover Easy Coleslaw 
-Beef broth
-red wine
-store bought roasted almonds and cashews

Supplements:
-1 tsp Magnesium Citrate (Natural Calm) in the morning

Dairy:
Week 3 of dairy re-introduction: raw butter
So far so good with the raw butter. No measurable reaction with either of us.

Energy Level:
OK.

Mood:
Iffy.

Brain Power:
OK.

Back pain:
Still none. (???)

Foot pain:
None.

Knee Pain:
None.

Heartburn:
None

Day of cycle:
17

Last nights sleep:
I went to bed too late, but at least I slept better. Six hours uninterrupted. Nice.

Comments:
We stayed at The Fiancé's parents too late tonight. Gotta get to bed so I'm not too much of a mess to shoot the wedding tomorrow.

Full-Gaps Day 50 (Pre-Intro)

Breakfast:
-nothing (oops)

Lunch:
-coffee, with honey
-eggs fried in ghee with unprocessed salt and fresh ground black pepper
-homemade ketchup

Snacks:
-dried apricots

Dinner:
-leftover Spicy Meatloaf
-Easy Coleslaw 
-red wine

Supplements:
-1 tsp Magnesium Citrate (Natural Calm) in the morning

Dairy:
Week 3 of dairy re-introduction: raw butter
So far so good with the raw butter. No measurable reaction with either of us.

Energy Level:
OK.

Mood:
Good.

Brain Power:
OK.

Back pain:
None. (???)

Foot pain:
None.

Knee Pain:
Very mild pain in left knee when sitting or climbing stairs.

Heartburn:
None

Day of cycle:
16

Last nights sleep:
I think I fell asleep somewhere around 4am and woke up at 9am. Wow, a little bit of sleep makes a HUGE difference.

Comments:
Oh my gosh,  I feel so much better today. I can't wait to get a real nights sleep. Maybe tonight, since I'm feelin' pretty good (wine induced) I hope I'll be able to fall asleep without laying there and staring off into the great big nothing. (As in, it's dark and my eyes are bad)

That reminds me, at my last optometrist appointment my prescription improved. My prescription before was:
Right eye -9.25
Left eye -8.5

This time it was
Right eye -7.5
Left eye -7.0

The optometrist was shocked at how much my prescription had changed for the better. I asked her what she thought would account for that. 

She didn't have an answer.

She mumbled something about eyes getting better as we age, but when I pressed her on that opinion she wouldn't back it up.

Then she said maybe my last prescription was wrong, but I know that can't be the case. First, my vision using the glasses from that prescription was great, until recently when I noticed things were getting blurry.

Second, that doc was recommended to me by The Fiancé's best bud and I trust his opinion.

So, if there was nothing wrong with my prescription why did my vision improve? Well, I have my own theories. The main one is that I started taking fermented cod liver oil (FCLO) which is high is fat soluble vitamin A. I'm not taking it currently because I cut out all supplements after I stopped my Adrenal Fatigue treatment. As soon as we reintroduce Butter Oil I will resume taking the FCLO.

Between that and eating a Nourishing Traditions/Weston Price type diet, I think that is what improved my vision. It is absolutely amazing what your body can do for you when you give it the nutrients it needs to heal.

Full-Gaps Day 49 (Pre-Intro)

Breakfast:
-coffee, with honey
-Leftover Thai-ish Coleslaw with Crispy Walnuts

Lunch:
-Leftover Lemon Roast Chicken (specialty chicken) from Choices
-Leftover Thai-ish Coleslaw

Snacks:
-none

Dinner:
-Spicy Meatloaf
-Leftover Thai-ish Coleslaw 
-Steamed green beans with raw butter and meatloaf "juice" (yes, I siphoned off all the fatty goodness and spices that cooked out of the meatloaf and poured some on the beans)
-beef broth

Supplements:
-1 tsp Magnesium Citrate (Natural Calm) in the morning

Dairy:
Week 3 of dairy re-introduction: raw butter
No reaction for either of us that I can tell.

Energy Level:
Very low.

Mood:
Not great.

Brain Power:
Fuzzy.

Back pain:
Whole body aches and stiff neck from not sleeping. I feel like I have the flu.

Foot pain:
Very mild pain in both feet through the day.

Knee Pain:
A bit of pain in left knee when sitting or climbing stairs.

Heartburn:
None

Day of cycle:
15

Last nights sleep:
Horrid. Last night was nite 3 of no sleep. I was awake until 6:20am and then must have fallen asleep because I woke up just after 7am and remembered a dream.

Comments:
While lying in bed last night I realized that the not sleeping thing is anxiety. I'm going to a wedding this weekend. Not only attending, but shooting it. Not sure if I've mentioned I'm a photographer... yah, the blog with no pictures is written by a photographer. Ha ha on me.

I stopped doing weddings last year due to the stress I would feel when a job was approaching. I never realized it was anxiety at that point. I didn't know what the heck was wrong with me. I focused on portraiture and told myself I didn't like shooting weddings, they were too much work, blah blah blah. Except that when I first started out doing weddings I loved them. I loved the fast pace and the thrill you get from the pressure to not screw up. I loved meeting people and especially enjoyed bossing them around ;-p

The wedding I'm shooting this weekend is for a family member and I agreed to do it as a wedding gift. I had no idea that I was going to react this way. I will survive, but I expect to be wiped out for at least a week or two after it. My adrenals are freaking out. 

I think my anxiety is amped up due to being on GAPS as well. The dream I had this morning was about carrying our cooler into the wedding reception with all of our GAPS legal food in it. OK, when I woke up even I thought that was funny... and kind of a good idea.

I know I'll get it done and I'll do a good job, but my adrenals are going to be taxed. I plan to drink copious amounts of wine at the reception to help them rebuild. (yes, I'm joking... not about the wine though)

Spicy Meatloaf

This recipe is pleasantly spicy, not burn the heck outta ya.

For the Loaf:

• 2 lbs ground beef (grass fed if possible)
• 4 cloves garlic, crushed
• 1/2 cup onion, finely chopped
• 1/4 cup almond flour
• 1/4 cup homemade ketchup
• 1 tbsp yellow mustard
• 1 tsp chipotle powder
• 1 tbsp Frank's Red Hot
• 1 egg
• 1 tbsp fish sauce (make sure there's no added sugar)
• 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
• 1/2 tsp unprocessed salt

For the sauce:

• 1/4 cup homemade ketchup
• 1 tbsp yellow mustard
• 2-3 tbsp Frank's Red Hot
• 1 tbsp honey

Preheat the oven to 350F.

Mix the ingredients for the loaf in a large bowl. Take some time to knead it a bit, this will help everything stick together when cooked.

Press the mixed loaf ingredients into a loaf pan. I use a glass one.

Mix the sauce ingredients and spread them over the loaf like frosting. 

Bake at 350F for 1.5 hours.

Full-Gaps Day 48 (Pre-Intro)

Breakfast:
-coffee, black
-fresh nectarine

Lunch:
-Leftover Skewers of Garlicky Chicken and Pineapple
-beef broth

Snacks:
-none

Dinner:
-Lemon Roast Chicken (specialty chicken) from Choices
-Thai-ish Coleslaw

Supplements:
-1 tsp Magnesium Citrate (Natural Calm) in the morning

Dairy:
Week 3 of dairy re-introduction: raw butter
No raw butter today.

Energy Level:
Low.

Mood:
Good.

Brain Power:
OK. Brain is a bit muddled this evening.

Back pain:
No low back pain this morning.
No between the shoulder blades pain, but I didn't do much in the kitchen today.

Foot pain:
Very mild pain in both feet through the day.

Knee Pain:
A bit of pain in right knee when sitting or climbing stairs.

Heartburn:
None

Day of cycle:
14

Last nights sleep:
Not great. Same as yesterday, it took a long time to fall asleep and then I kept waking up. I was awake until at least 3am. I hate laying in bed, feeling out of it and tired, but not falling asleep. Hopefully tonight I'm tired enough that I crash.

Comments:
Had to do a bunch of errands today so no time to make dinner. I'm way behind in posting recipes too. Gotta get on that.

Full-Gaps Day 47 (Pre-Intro)

Breakfast:
-coffee, black
-fresh nectarine

Lunch:
-eggs fried in ghee

Snacks:
-none

Dinner:
-Skewers of Garlicky Chicken and Pineapple
-steamed Brussels sprouts with raw butter and unprocessed salt
-beef broth

Supplements:
-1 tsp Magnesium Citrate (Natural Calm) in the morning

Dairy:
Week 3 of dairy re-introduction: raw butter
Didn't get our raw yogurt this week so I'm reintroducing raw butter instead. We both had it with dinner and so far so good.

Energy Level:
Low-ish. I think I'm going through another round of die-off. This isn't my normal time to feel tired during the month.

Mood:
Good.

Brain Power:
OK.

Back pain:
No low back pain this morning.
No between the shoulder blades pain. Even when washing dishes after dinner!!! That is exciting. 
I did get some low back pain right above my right hip (while washing dishes), but it is nowhere near as painful as the dreaded between the shoulder blade pain so ya-hoo!

Foot pain:
Very mild pain in left foot through the day.

Knee Pain:
No knee pain today.

Heartburn:
None

Day of cycle:
13

Last nights sleep:
Not great. Took a long time to fall asleep and then I kept waking up.

Comments:
Not feeling very good today or very hungry. Had a stomach ache before lunch so eggs probably weren't my best bet, but they sure are easy to prepare when you feel like crap.

Full-Gaps Day 46 (Pre-Intro)

Breakfast:
-coffee, black
-fresh nectarine

Lunch:
-Leftover Curry Roast Chicken
-Leftover Greek salad
-Bubbies Pickle
-beef broth

Snacks:
-Crispy walnuts
-dried fig

Dinner:
-Left over Curry Roast Chicken
-Leftover Greek salad, no feta

Supplements:
-1 tsp Magnesium Citrate (Natural Calm) in the morning

Dairy:
Week 3 of dairy re-introduction: nothing new :-)

Energy Level:
Low.

Mood:
OK.

Brain Power:
OK.

Back pain:
No low back pain this morning.
No between the shoulder blades pain.

Foot pain:
Very mild pain in both feet through the day.

Knee Pain:
Very mild pain in right knee when sitting.

Heartburn:
None

Day of cycle:
12

Last nights sleep:
OK.

Comments:
The Fiancé realized something interesting recently.

He had a tooth that was abscessing and painful. The dentist wanted to do a root canal so we looked into healing it naturally. Doing a Traditional diet plus adding the healing foods suggested in Ramiel Nagel's book, Cure Tooth Decay, brought down the inflammation and abscess and alleviated his pain. The most dramatic change was brought about by Ramiel's Tooth Infection Halting Recipe (part way down the page).

Anyway, what he has realized is that every time he has to use his inhaler for asthma his tooth flares up again. A little raw grass-fed beef solves this, but it keeps happening. He is down to weekly puffs on his inhaler since starting GAPS from once every 48 hours. 

It makes me wonder what is in the inhaler that is causing his dental woes. Also, he has horrible teeth. Lots of cavities. Both of our parents fed us pretty well as children. He had asthma and had to take medication for it throughout his childhood. I didn't. He has a mouthful of cavities and I don't have any.

My mom wouldn't allow my younger brother or I to have fluoride treatments as children. Again, I have no cavities and my brother has just gotten his first one. Interesting? I think so. Especially since my brother eats SAD.

Full-Gaps Day 45 (Pre-Intro)

Breakfast:
-coffee with honey
-fresh peach

Lunch:
-banana fried in ghee with crispy walnuts and a drizzle of honey
-beef broth

Snacks:
-none

Dinner:
-Left over Curry Roast Chicken
-Greek salad, no feta

Supplements:
-1 tsp Magnesium Citrate (Natural Calm) in the morning

Dairy:
Week 2 of dairy re-introduction: nothing new :-)

Energy Level:
Low.

Mood:
OK.

Brain Power:
OK.

Back pain:
No low back pain this morning.
No between the shoulder blades pain.

Foot pain:
Very mild pain in both feet through the day.

Knee Pain:
Very mild pain in right knee when sitting.

Heartburn:
None

Day of cycle:
11

Last nights sleep:
OK, got woken up a few times.

Comments:
Feeling tired today. Gonna try that whole wake up to an alarm deal again this week. That means getting to bed earlier, so good night!

Full-Gaps Day 44 (Pre-Intro)

Breakfast:
-coffee with honey
-fresh yellow plum

Lunch:
-strips of flank steak wrapped around chunks of avocado and curry mayo
-Bubbies pickle

Snacks:
-a date

Dinner:
-Left over Curry Roast Chicken
-Simple veggie salad with tomato, avocado and lime

Supplements:
-1 tsp Magnesium Citrate (Natural Calm) in the morning

Dairy:
Week 2 of dairy re-introduction: nothing new :-)

Energy Level:
Low.

Mood:
OK.

Brain Power:
OK.

Back pain:
No low back pain this morning.
Dinner was quick so no between the shoulder blades pain.

Foot pain:
Very mild pain in both feet through the day.

Knee Pain:
Didn't notice any knee pain today.

Heartburn:
None

Day of cycle:
10

Last nights sleep:
Good.

Comments:
Took a few minutes and watched The Story of Stuff again. I like to watch it every few months as a reminder that I don't need every single thing I think I want. We do our best to purchase things that are useful now and will remain so years from now. We also avoid gadget-y things and overly fashionable things. That said, there is still a gorgeous bottle of sparkly blue nail polish sitting on my desk for me to gaze at during the day, (formaldehyde, toluene, and DBP free). We do our best :-)

Full-Gaps Day 43 (Pre-Intro)

Breakfast:
-coffee with honey
-dried figs, dates, and apricots

Lunch:
-eggs fried in ghee and coconut oil
-homemade ketchup
-beef bacon (smoked brisket)
-Bubbies pickle

Snacks:
-none

Dinner:
-Curry Roast Chicken with Onions and Brussels Sprouts

Supplements:
-1 tsp Magnesium Citrate (Natural Calm) in the morning

Dairy:
Week 2 of dairy re-introduction: nothing new :-)

Energy Level:
Low-OK.

Mood:
OK.

Brain Power:
OK.

Back pain:
No low back pain this morning.
Dinner was quick so no between the shoulder blades pain.

Foot pain:
Very mild pain in both feet though the day.

Knee Pain:
Didn't notice any knee pain today.

Heartburn:
A tiny bit after lunch. Sometimes eggs do that. Plus I had to get going early-ish so I didn't eat very much this morning.

Day of cycle:
9

Last nights sleep:
Good.

Comments:
Went and picked up an order of organic pastured chicken this morning. Sumas Mountain Farms, which is where I got it, is modeling some of their technique after Joel Salatin of Polyface Farms. Cool. They even have mobile coops that get dragged around daily after the cows. Gotta love it, real live grass farmers in the valley!

Full-Gaps Day 42 (Pre-Intro)

Breakfast:
-coffee with honey
-fresh cherries

Lunch:
-banana and crispy pecans fried in ghee with a drizzle of honey.
(I have no idea where that came from... had a craving, but I've never cooked a banana before in my life. Weird, right?)

Snacks:
-none

Dinner:
-Marinated Flank Steak
-Carrot fries with curry mayo
-tomato slices
-homemade sauerkraut

Supplements:
-1 tsp Magnesium Citrate (Natural Calm) in the morning

Dairy:
Week 2 of dairy re-introduction: nothing :-)

Energy Level:
Low-OK.

Mood:
OK.

Brain Power:
OK.

Back pain:
No low back pain this morning.
Dinner was quick so no between the shoulder blades pain.

Foot pain:
Very mild pain in both feet through the day.

Knee Pain:
Didn't notice any knee pain today.

Heartburn:
None.

Day of cycle:
8

Last nights sleep:
Good.

Comments:
The construction guys are driving me nuts. They say they will be by the next day and then show up three days later. Grrr.

Full-Gaps Day 41 (Pre-Intro)

Breakfast:
-coffee with honey
-fresh peach

Lunch:
-eggs fried in ghee
-homemade ketchup

Snacks:
-none

Dinner:
We went out to dinner for a family bday. I called ahead to the restaurant to see what kind of oils they used and it was all olive oil. The only thing we stretched it with was having some of their tzatziki. It was only yogurt, garlic & cucumber, but it was most likely commercially prepared yogurt, not homemade.
-greek salad, no feta
-chicken souvlaki
-tzatziki
-red wine
-Grain Free Cake
-Peach and Blueberry Sauce

Supplements:
-1 tsp Magnesium Citrate (Natural Calm) in the morning

Dairy:
Week 2 of dairy re-introduction: nothing :-)
Had a tiny bit of yogurt tonight with dinner. Neither The Fiancé or I noticed any kind of reaction.

Energy Level:
OK.

Mood:
OK.

Brain Power:
OK.

Back pain:
No low back pain this morning.
Didn't have to make dinner so no between the shoulder blade pain.

Foot pain:
Very mild pain in both feet through the day.

Knee Pain:
Didn't notice any knee pain today.

Heartburn:
None.

Day of cycle:
7

Last nights sleep:
Good.

Comments:
I would rather have had our family dinner at our place, but with construction and the heat it wasn't possible this time. We can pretty much only eat Greek food if we go out. Even then, calling ahead to verify what kind of oils are used is necessary. For instance, this restaurant uses olive oil on their salad and souvlaki, but margarine on their cooked veggies. Ick.
I brought dessert with us so the bday girl could have a cake, but The Fiancé and I would still be able to eat it. I think it was a bit weird for the family, but they're all good sports and used to my crazy ways now.

Full-Gaps Day 40 (Pre-Intro)

Breakfast:
-coffee with honey
-tomato and cucumber slices

Lunch:
-none

Snacks:
-fresh yellow plum

Dinner:
-Fish Sticks
-Homemade seafood cocktail sauce (homemade ketchup mixed with GAPS legal horseradish sauce and a few shots of Tabasco)
-Zucchini noodles with dairy free pesto
-beef broth

Supplements:
-1 tsp Magnesium Citrate (Natural Calm) in the morning
Had a foot cramp when I first woke up this morning. I think we're ready to start taking more magnesium, but I need to order more first.

Dairy:
Week 2 of dairy re-introduction: nothing :-)
Had a mix up this week and we won't be getting our raw yogurt until next week.

Energy Level:
Not great.

Mood:
OK.
A bit testy this evening.

Brain Power:
OK.
Had a few stumble-y sentences this evening.

Back pain:
No low back pain this morning.
Between the shoulder blade pain kept me company while making dinner.

Foot pain:
A bit of stabby pain in left foot this morning and evening.
Very mild pain in both feet through the day.

Knee Pain:
Didn't notice any knee pain today.

Heartburn:
None.

Day of cycle:
6 (.) is over.

Last nights sleep:
Good.

Comments:
I'm reading the graphic novel Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. I love Jane Austen, but didn't want to read a whole version devoted to zombies. When I friend told me there was a graphic novel available I checked it out at the local library.

It's surprisingly entertaining. Definitely gross in places, but it's made me smile a few times too.

Is it weird that after a lifetime of never reading a graphic novel I've read two within a month of each other? The first one was Janet Evanovich's Trouble Maker. I love her writing. She's a funny lady.

I didn't eat very much today. Wasn't feeling hungry. It's hot.

Full-Gaps Day 39 (Pre-Intro)

Breakfast:
-coffee with honey
-fresh peach

Lunch:
-eggs fried in ghee
-homemade ketchup

Snacks:
-experimental cookie

Dinner:
-Leftover Oven BBQ's Chicken Thighs
-cucumber slices with unprocessed salt and fresh ground pepper
-homemade sauerkraut

Supplements:
-1 tsp Magnesium Citrate (Natural Calm) in the morning

Dairy:
Week 2 of dairy re-introduction: Raw Yogurt
-Had ghee at lunch and again no reaction for me. The last two times The Fiancé has had it he hasn't had a reaction either.
-I pick up our dairy shares on Tuesday or Wednesday so we won't be trying yogurt until then.

Energy Level:
OK-ish.

Mood:
OK.

Brain Power:
OK.

Back pain:
No low back pain this morning.
No between the shoulder blades pain, but then I didn't do to much in the kitchen cuz this place is hot.

Foot pain:
A bit of stabby pain in left foot this morning.
Very mild pain in both feet through the day.

Knee Pain:
Very mild pain in left knee when climbing stairs or sitting.

Heartburn:
None.

Day of cycle:
5 (.) pretty much over.

Last nights sleep:
Good.

Comments:
It's still hot.
I keep forgetting to have broth. I ran out this week and had to make more and now I guess I'm out of the habit of remembering to have it. I guess I need to make it a regular part of our lunch or something. That might help me remember. 
I keep forgetting about having lemon in water when I first get up too.

Full-GAPS Days 31-60 (Pre-Intro)

Full-Gaps Day 31 (Pre-Intro)
Full-Gaps Day 32 (Pre-Intro)
Full-Gaps Day 33 (Pre-Intro)
Full-Gaps Day 34 (Pre-Intro)
Full-Gaps Day 35 (Pre-Intro)
Full-Gaps Day 36 (Pre-Intro)
Full-Gaps Day 37 (Pre-Intro)
Full-Gaps Day 38 (Pre-Intro)
Full-Gaps Day 39 (Pre-Intro)
Full-Gaps Day 40 (Pre-Intro)
Full-Gaps Day 41 (Pre-Intro)
Full-Gaps Day 42 (Pre-Intro)
Full-Gaps Day 43 (Pre-Intro)
Full-Gaps Day 44 (Pre-Intro)
Full-Gaps Day 45 (Pre-Intro)
Full-Gaps Day 46 (Pre-Intro)
Full-Gaps Day 47 (Pre-Intro)
Full-Gaps Day 48 (Pre-Intro)
Full-Gaps Day 49 (Pre-Intro)
Full-Gaps Day 50 (Pre-Intro)
Full-Gaps Day 51 (Pre-Intro)
Full-Gaps Day 55 (Pre-Intro)
Full-Gaps Day 56 (Pre-Intro)
Full-Gaps Day 57 (Pre-Intro)

Full-GAPS Days 1-30 (Pre-Intro)

Full-Gaps Day 1 (Pre-Intro)
Full-Gaps Day 2 (Pre-Intro)
Full-Gaps Day 3 (Pre-Intro)
Full-Gaps Day 4 (Pre-Intro)
Full-Gaps Day 5 (Pre-Intro)
Full-Gaps Day 6 (Pre-Intro)
Full-Gaps Day 7 (Pre-Intro)
Full-Gaps Day 8 (Pre-Intro)
Full-Gaps Day 9 (Pre-Intro)
Full-Gaps Day 10 (Pre-Intro)
Full-Gaps Day 11 (Pre-Intro)
Full-Gaps Day 12 (Pre-Intro)
Full-Gaps Day 13 (Pre-Intro)
Full-Gaps Day 14 (Pre-Intro)
Full-Gaps Day 15 (Pre-Intro)
Full-Gaps Day 16 (Pre-Intro)
Full-Gaps Day 17 (Pre-Intro)
Full-Gaps Day 18 (Pre-Intro)
Full-Gaps Day 19 (Pre-Intro)
Full-Gaps Day 20 (Pre-Intro)
Full-Gaps Day 21 (Pre-Intro)
Full-Gaps Day 22 (Pre-Intro)
Full-Gaps Day 23 (Pre-Intro)
Full-Gaps Day 24 (Pre-Intro)
Full-Gaps Day 25 (Pre-Intro)
Full-Gaps Day 26 (Pre-Intro)
Full-Gaps Day 27 (Pre-Intro)
Full-Gaps Day 28 (Pre-Intro)
Full-Gaps Day 29 (Pre-Intro)
Full-Gaps Day 30 (Pre-Intro)

Full-Gaps Day 38 (Pre-Intro)

Breakfast:
-coffee with honey
-fresh peach

Lunch:
-Leftover guacamole
-Leftover salsa
-Sesame Crackers

Snacks:
-coconutty treat

Dinner:
-Oven BBQ's Chicken Thighs
-cucumber slices with unprocessed salt and fresh ground pepper
-homemade sauerkraut
-red wine

Supplements:
-1 tsp Magnesium Citrate (Natural Calm) in the morning

Dairy:
Week 1 of dairy re-introduction: Ghee
No ghee today. 

Energy Level:
Low.

Mood:
OK.

Brain Power:
OK.

Back pain:
No low back pain this morning.
A tiny bit of between the shoulder blades pain this afternoon.

Foot pain:
Very mild pain in both feet through the day.

Knee Pain:
Very mild pain in left knee when climbing stairs or sitting.

Heartburn:
None.
Day of cycle:
4 (.)

Last nights sleep:
Good, except I woke up around 4:30am and it took a while to get back to sleep.

Comments:
It's hot.

Full-Gaps Day 37 (Pre-Intro)

Breakfast:
-coffee with honey
-fresh yellow plum

Lunch:
-Leftover guacamole
-Leftover salsa
-Sesame Crackers

Snacks:
-experimental cookie

Dinner:
-Beef broth seasoned with salt and fresh lemon juice with raw eggs mixed in (they cooked in the broth)

Supplements:
-1 tsp Magnesium Citrate (Natural Calm) in the morning

Dairy:
Week 1 of dairy re-introduction: Ghee
No ghee today. 

Energy Level:
OK, but it's hot in here and that's making me sleepy.

Mood:
OK.

Brain Power:
Good.

Back pain:
No low back pain this morning.
No pain between the shoulder blades today, but then I didn't do very much in the kitchen.

Foot pain:
Very mild pain in both feet through the day.

Knee Pain:
Very mild pain in left knee when climbing stairs or sitting.

Heartburn:
A tiny bit after the salsa. Sometimes tomatoes do that to me. Never when they are fresh, but after I've cooked or prepared them in some way. 
I haven't had heartburn for ages so when it was starting I almost didn't understand what was happening :-)

Day of cycle:
3 (.)

Last nights sleep:
Good. The alarm was set much later so no stress over that.

Comments:
Our place is hot. We can't open the windows due to construction so no fresh air. Ick.

Full-Gaps Day 36 (Pre-Intro)

Breakfast:
-coffee with honey
-fresh peach

Lunch:
-Scrambled eggs with onion cooked with ghee and coconut oil

Snacks:
-experimental cookie
-crispy walnuts, pecans, and hazelnuts

Dinner:
-Salad with romaine, kalamata olives, ground chicken, Salsa, and Guacamole
-Coconutty Treat for dessert

Supplements:
-1 tsp Magnesium Citrate (Natural Calm) in the morning

Dairy:
Week 1 of dairy re-introduction: Ghee
-We had eggs cooked in ghee for lunch and neither The Fiancé or I had any reaction. Maybe it was just a coincidence that he got sleepy after dinner two nights in a row... further testing required :-)

Energy Level:
OK.

Mood:
Good.

Brain Power:
Good-ish.

Back pain:
No low back pain this morning.
A bit of between the shoulder blades pain this evening.

Foot pain:
Mild pain in both feet through the day.

Knee Pain:
Very mild pain in left knee when climbing stairs or sitting.

Heartburn:
None

Day of cycle:
2 (.)
Cramps are history :-)

Last nights sleep:
Ok, but I woke up at 5am and had trouble falling asleep again. That's what I get for looking at the clock. It was dark so I thought it was more like 3am and when I realized what time it really was all I could think was, "Arg... only 2 more hours of sleep!" Duh. When will I learn? Well, I showed that alarm clock. When it went off I turned it off and fell asleep for another 2 hours.

Comments:
I've definitely noticed a difference in my moods. I've just started my period, so the last two weeks normally would have been spent being a tad shriek-y. The treatment I was doing for my Adrenal Fatigue prior to GAPS really helped nip that in the butt. GAPS has made a further difference in balancing those old hormones. I was almost non-reactive. Maybe a bit sensitive, but not fly-off-the-handle-angry over any silly little thing. Nice.

Full-Gaps Day 35 (Pre-Intro)

Breakfast:
-coffee with honey
-fresh nectarine

Lunch:
-Salmon salad with fresh dill and hot banana pepper stuffed in Hungarian pepper with crispy walnuts on top
-Bubbies pickle
-slices of fresh tomato
-Coconutty Treat

Snacks:
-cookie made with creamed coconut... an experiment that didn't go so well, but was still edible, after the flames in the oven died down.

Dinner:
-leftover Slow Cooked Beef Short Ribs
-leftover Mashed Cauliflower, made with some of the "juices" from cooking the short ribs
-steamed green beans and Brussels sprouts with ghee
-Homemade Sauerkraut
-experimental cookie for dessert

Supplements:
-1 tsp Magnesium Citrate (Natural Calm) in the morning

Dairy:
Week 1 of dairy re-introduction: Ghee
I'm free to eat ghee now, yay. I'll keep monitoring (pestering) The Fiancé to see if there is any reaction.
We had ghee again at dinner. I was fine.
The Fiancé is feeling bloated and sleepy and needed a nap. So either the ghee is getting him or maybe I am feeding him too much? Further experimentation is required.

Energy Level:
OK.
Felt sleepy this afternoon.

Mood:
Good.

Brain Power:
OK.

Back pain:
My lower back was freaking out when I went to bed last night. Not sure what that was all about.
It seemed fine this morning.
Between the shoulder blades pain was there this afternoon and on.

Foot pain:
Mild pain in both feet through the day.
Stabby pain in my right foot this morning.

Knee Pain:
Mild pain in left knee when climbing stairs or sitting.

Heartburn:
None

Day of cycle:
1
Holy cow, I just had a 29 day cycle??? That sounds too normal to be me! Pre-GAPS my cycles have ranged from 35 to 40 days. 
So, was the spotting I experienced this cycle just my body hitting the "reset" button? I guess I'll see next month.
I also had cramps today. Big bad ones that made me go lay fetal and moan and feel sorry for myself. Had the bright idea to take an ibuprofen. (I try not to take anything, at anytime, chemically so I don't usually think of it right away) It helped for about 45 minutes and then got over-powered by the evil cramps. They were gone by the time I had to make dinner. Is that good or bad?

Last nights sleep:
Ok. Still feeling tired when I get up. Trying to get used to a new wake up time.

Comments:
My cycle has shortened considerably, which is a good thing I think. All I can take from it at this point is that my hormones are trying to find balance. It's a wait-and-see until next month.

Full-Gaps Day 34 (Pre-Intro)

Breakfast:
-coffee with honey
-fresh yellow plum

Lunch:
-Salmon salad with fresh dill and hot banana pepper stuffed in an orange bell pepper with romaine on top
-Bubbies pickle
-Coconutty Treat

Snacks:
-crispy walnuts, pecans, peanuts, and hazelnuts
-dried date, apricot, and raisins

Dinner:
-Slow Cooked Beef Short Ribs
-Mashed Cauliflower, made with some of the "juices" from cooking the short ribs
-steamed green beans with ghee
-Homemade Sauerkraut
-fresh cherries for dessert

Supplements:
-1 tsp Magnesium Citrate (Natural Calm)

Dairy:
Week 1 of dairy re-introduction: Ghee
Today was 3 tsp ghee. 
I don't seem to have any reaction. Maybe a bit more energy.
The Fiancé needed a cat nap after dinner. We aren't sure if it was from the ghee or that he didn't get enough sleep last night.
Try, try again.

Energy Level:
OK this morning.
Getting tired this afternoon. Not used to geting up early-ish anymore.

Mood:
Good.

Brain Power:
OK.

Back pain:
No back pain this morning.
A few twinges of low back pain this afternoon. That feeling I get before it goes "out". I've been getting that feeling here and there, but my back hasn't actually gone out. Thank goodness.
Between the shoulder blades pain was back while making dinner tonight. Grrr.

Foot pain:
Mild pain in both feet through the day.

Knee Pain:
Mild pain in left knee when climbing stairs or sitting.

Heartburn:
None

Day of cycle:
29

Last nights sleep:
Ok.

Comments:
I was so excited that my between the shoulder blades pain was delayed until after dinner yesterday that it made me a bit grumpy when it returned today. I'm over it now, the grumpy, not the pain, and I'll cross my fingers that it's on its way out.

Sesame Gai Lan

• 1 large bunch gai lan, tough ends removed, and cut into 1-2" long pieces (you eat the stalks as well as the leaves)
• 5 tbsp virgin coconut oil
• 1 tbsp water
• 5 cloves garlic, crushed
• 1" piece ginger, peeled and grated with a micro grater
• 2 tsp sesame oil
• 1 tbsp sesame seeds
• 1 tsp honey
• unprocessed salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Heat the oil over medium in a large fry pan or wok. Add the gai lan and cook, stirring often. When the leaves start to soften add the water. Keep cooking and stirring until the water cooks off and the stalks turn bright green. This will take about 10 minutes.

Add the garlic and ginger, stir to mix and let cook for a few minutes. Add the sesame oil and sesame seeds. Stir and let cook for a few more minutes. Add the honey, stir, taste and season with salt and pepper. Serve.

Full-Gaps Day 33 (Pre-Intro)

Breakfast:
-coffee with honey
-fresh peach

Lunch:
-Salmon salad with fresh dill and hot banana pepper stuffed in sweet banana peppers with crispy hazelnuts and walnuts on top.
-Bubbies pickle

Snacks:
-Coconutty Treat

Dinner:
-Honey Garlic Roasted Chicken Breast
-Sesame Gai Lan 
-Homemade Sauerkraut
-blueberries and a Coconutty Treat for dessert

Supplements:
-1 tsp Magnesium Citrate (Natural Calm)

Dairy:
Week 1 of dairy re-introduction: Ghee
No ghee today, we'll try it again tomorrow.

Energy Level:
OK this morning.
Petered out this afternoon, but had a second wind in time to cook dinner.

Mood:
Good.

Brain Power:
Better than fuzzy. Garbling my words a bit.

Back pain:
No back pain this morning.
Didn't get the between the shoulder blade pain until I was cleaning up AFTER dinner. That was nice. This afternoon when I was doing stuff in the kitchen it was thinking about hurting, but didn't get there. 
And the whole cleaning up after dinner thing only happened because I managed to get dinner on the table early enough that I didn't feel like a zombie and ready for bed immediately after eating. Probably a good idea to keep up with that.

Foot pain:
Mild pain in both feet through the day.

Knee Pain:
Mild pain in left knee when climbing stairs or sitting.

Heartburn:
None

Day of cycle:
28

Last nights sleep:
Ok, it took a while to fall asleep because I knew I had to get up with an alarm this morning. Weird how that keeps me from sleeping.
There is going to be an alarm tomorrow too. I'm trying, gasp, to get up earlier. I get more done in the day and usually feel better in the morning.

Comments:
After 6 months of treating my Adrenal Fatigue I started developing a new symptom, anxiety. So, 2 months before I started GAPS I stopped taking all of my supplements and started searching for what was missing from my healing regime.

I think a big part of it is having a healthy digestive tract and the ability to properly breakdown and utilize nutrients as they are ingested. The more I learn about GAPS and small intestine inflammation, the more I realize there are a lot of people out there suffering from a multitude of diseases and health conditions needlessly.

For a while now I've felt like my toes and feet are going to cramp, they have once or twice, but mostly they just feel like they're going to. That and The Fiancé has been asking to restart our magnesium supplement is why I've decided to start taking it again.

I'm not sure how well it will work with compromised digestion. I guess we'll see.

Honey Garlic Roasted Chicken Breast

For the chicken:

• 2 breast halves, with bone and skin
• virgin coconut oil

For the sauce:

• 1/4 cup honey
• 1 tbsp garlic, minced fine
• 1 tsp white wine vinegar
• 1/4 tsp unprocessed salt
• 1/8 tsp finely ground black pepper
• 1/8 tsp tabasco sauce

Preheat oven to 350F.

I like to roast my chicken pieces on a rack over a pan lined with aluminum foil. I find the skin gets nice and crispy that way. Baste chicken with coconut oil and roast for about 40 minutes or until almost done. 

While the chicken is cooking prepare the sauce. To do so, mix all ingredients together in a small bowl and leave on the counter to blend flavours.

After 40 minutes, take the chicken out and baste with sauce. Put it back in the oven and let cook for another 5 minutes. Repeat this two more times, so the chicken ends up cooking for another 15 minutes total.

If there is any sauce left over dump it over the chicken when serving.

Coconutty Treats

This is my GAPS legal version of The Nourishing Gourmet's Nourishing and Scrumptious "Mounds" Candy Bars. Which are absolutely deadly, by the way. TNG is one of my favorite sites for recipes. She's a creative force in the "real food" cooking world.

We can't have chocolate, yet, so I basically made the bottoms only. I changed the size, I did them in a mini muffin tin and it made 16. It probably would have made a few more, but my tin holds 16 so I made it work. I've done them in regular size muffin tins and they were too big for us. I should say they were too big for me, I don't remember The Fiancé complaining.

The ingredients were pretty much the same except I used vanilla extract instead of almond extract, I added 1/8 tsp unprocessed salt, and I like to mix it up with the nuts. I use any combo or type of crispy nut I have on hand. Today's were cripsy hazelnuts. Yum.

Oh ya, make sure you use a good quality virgin coconut oil. They'll taste bad if you don't.

Full-Gaps Day 32 (Pre-Intro)

Breakfast:
-coffee with honey
-fresh peach

Lunch:
-Leftover Red Curry Turkey Soup, with a tsp of ghee added

Snacks:
-Crispy walnuts, cashews, peanuts, and hazelnuts, recipe in Nourishing Traditions
-dried date, figs, and apricots

Dinner:
-Leftover Red Curry Turkey Soup
-Bubbies pickle

Dairy:
Day 1 of dairy re-introduction
1 tsp ghee added to soup at lunch. 
I don't feel anything one way or the other. 
The Fiancé said he got a bit congested, but I made that soup smoking spicy hot so that could have been it too. Ha ha on us.
Guess that wasn't the best thing to try our first dairy in 4 weeks out in :-)

Energy Level:
OK this morning.
Tired, but manageable this afternoon.

Mood:
OK.

Brain Power:
Better than fuzzy.

Back pain:
A little bit of low back pain this morning, but it went away quickly.
Between the shoulder blades pain while working in the kitchen this morning and afternoon.

Foot pain:
Mild pain in both feet through the day.

Knee Pain:
Mild pain in left knee when climbing stairs or sitting.

Heartburn:
None

Day of cycle:
27

Last nights sleep:
Good.

Comments:
First day of dairy! How exciting... except that I put our ghee into a very flavourful soup and couldn't taste it at all. Hmm. Gotta rethink that.

Red Curry Turkey Soup

Had a craving for something hot and spicy. This soup did the trick.

• 4 tbsp virgin coconut oil
• 1 large onion, finely chopped
• 1 turkey thigh, boned and skinned (save that stuff for stock) and cut into bite sized pieces, do not cut off the fat, it will cook off and add major flavour to the soup
• 4 cloves garlic, crushed
• 2 cups chicken stock
• 2 cups water
• 2 tbsp sliced pickled jalapeno peppers  (optional, plus make sure it's GAPS legal)
• 1 398ml/14oz can pineapple chunks with juice, make sure there is no added sugar
• 2 tsp sesame oil
• 2 tsp fish sauce
• 1 400ml can coconut milk
• 1-2 tsp Thai red curry paste, Asian Kitchen brand is GAPS legal
• 2 tbsp (after chopped) fresh basil (I keep some handy in the freezer)
• 2 tbsp (after chopped) fresh cilantro (I keep some handy in the freezer)
• 1/4 cup fresh lime juice

Heat coconut oil over medium-low heat in a pot that will hold at least 4 litres. Add the onion and sauté until softened and starting to brown. Add the thigh pieces, stirring occasionally. When cooked add the garlic. Cook until the garlic is fragrant and then add the stock and water.

Let the stock and water come to an almost simmer and then add the jalapeno pepper and pineapple w/juice. Let it come up to an almost simmer again.

Add the sesame oil, fish sauce, and half of the can of coconut milk. While the soup is heating up, mix 1-2 tsp of red curry paste into the remaining half of the coconut milk and whisk to blend. Add it to the soup too. Bring it back up to an almost simmer and just before serving add the basil, cilantro, and lime juice.

Sweet and Sour Meatballs

The Fiancé requested that the next time I make these I double the sauce. I served them with Roasted Cauliflower, but they would probably be even better with Cauliflower Fried "Rice". (Shredded cauliflower fried in coconut oil)

We had these for dinner, but they would also make a great appetizer.

For the Balls:
1 lb grass-fed ground beef
1/4 cup onion, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, crushed
2 tbsp sesame seeds
1 tsp sesame oil, the Asian condiment type
1 tsp fish sauce
1 egg, from pastured chickens
coconut oil

For the Sauce:
1/3 cup Homemade Ketchup
1 tbsp white wine vinegar
2 tbsp unpasteurized honey
1/2 tsp sambal oelek, optional

Put all of the ingredients for the meatballs into a bowl. Mix well with your hands, kneading them for a bit, and then form 1" balls.

Heat a tbsp or so of coconut oil in a large frying pan over med-low heat. Add the balls and cook. Turn as one side cooks to get them evenly browned. Add more coconut oil if needed.

While the balls are cooking, mix together the ingredients for the sauce. Double the recipe if you like things saucier.

When the balls are cooked, put them in a serving dish, discarding cooking juices, and pour the sauce over them. Toss gently to coat with sauce. Serve.

Full-Gaps Day 31 (Pre-Intro)

Breakfast:
-coffee with honey
-fresh pineapple

Lunch:
-Leftover hamburger patty with coconut flour pancake
-Bubbies pickle

Snacks:
-Crispy walnuts, cashews, peanuts, and hazelnuts, recipe in Nourishing Traditions
-dried date, figs, and prunes

Dinner:
-Red Curry Turkey Soup

Dairy:
Day 28 no dairy

Energy Level:
OK this morning.
Tired this afternoon and evening.

Mood:
OK, but easily frazzled.

Brain Power:
Fuzzy.

Back pain:
Low back didn't hurt at all today.
Pain between the shoulder blades got really bad this afternoon.

Foot pain:
Mild pain in both feet through the day.

Knee Pain:
Mild pain in left knee when climbing stairs or sitting.

Heartburn:
None

Day of cycle:
26

Last nights sleep:
Good. More weird dreams. In one I got in a fight with my mom because she was using inhumane methods to trap raccoons. Where do these crazy dreams come from?? Too funny :-)

Comments:
We will be starting to introduce dairy in the next day or so. The plan is to start with ghee, then raw yogurt, then butter, then kefir, and then see what happens from there. I'll probably take a week to evaluate each addition. I'm very curious to see if or how they affect The Fiancé's allergies and if they do anything to me.